Page 24 of Falling Back to You

“No, sir.”

He scratched at his perpetual five o’clock shadow. “You know, Dial, you don’t have to be a stranger. I know Lauren would love for you to stop by for a visit.”

“I appreciate that.”

“We’re family… and family takes care of one another. So, when Ozzie’s away, if you ever need anything, Lauren’s got you.”

When Ozzie and I were dating, my conversations with Ernest consisted mostly of his grunting to acknowledge my presence. He’d considered me a distraction, believing Ozzie’s time was better served on the ranch. When we got pregnant, Lauren, Oz’s mother, was elated at the thought of being a glam-ma, but Ernest just huffed and shook his head. He was a hard worker, but he wasn’t pleasant to be around, so this newfound hospitality was jarring.

“I think we’re good. Oz and I have a well-structured routine. It works.”

“It works for now, but when he goes to Texas—”

“Hey, there you are!” Ozzie shouted, inserting his body between his father and myself. “Jessup said you were looking for me.”

“Just wanted to make sure you know about the time change for the Texas expansion meeting, since you’re taking the lead.”

“Yeah, yeah. I saw, and I’ll be there.” Ozzie’s eyes bounced from me to his father.

“Have you told Dial the exciting news?”

“Dad.” Ozzie’s tone was stern, which was unusual when talking to Ernest. He and his father carried on a silent conversation they didn’t want me privy to.

“Well, I’ll leave you to it. Don’t forget what I said, son.” Ernest rapped a heavy hand on Ozzie’s back. “Good seeing you again, Dial.”

I observed Ozzie, who was flexing his fingers, a sign something was nagging at him, while he glared at his father until he rounded a building and was out of sight.

When he finally turned toward me, he said, “Sorry about that.”

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah.” He faced the window looking out into the training arena. “You see Maple out there?”

“Yeah, she’s getting good.”

“Real good, just like her daddy.” He flexed a muscle. “So… what all else were you and Pops talking about?”

“I think he wants me to spend more time with your mom. He suggested she could help out when you’re out of town.”

“What do you mean?”

I hitched a shoulder. “I don’t know. He was going on about me not being alone and how I had support. Not sure where all the goodwill came from, but I let him know we had shit covered.”

He swatted at a fly. “That’s it?”

“Not unless you want to share that ‘exciting news.’”

“Pfft… just that the paperwork went through on the Texas expansion. My dad’s real excited about it.”

“You sound less enthused.”

“Just means more work, is all.”

“The one thing that never stops.”

His face brightened. “Hey, did you notice Mrs. Forman opened up her peach stall?”

“When?”